Kathy Plante (left) and Valerie Gold peel eggs while helping volunteers of the B'nai Zion congregation prepare a traditional dish of charoset for the passover seder.

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When Helaine and Bill Braunig sit down to dinner tonight - with as many as 15 friends and family - a small crystal dish will hold a special place of honor at the table.

Passed down from Helaine Braunig's grandmother, the heirloom will be filled with a mixture of finely diced apples and nuts mixed with wine and honey, just as it has for dozens of family Passover seders. The bowl isn't large enough to hold enough of the ritual food, known as charoset, for everyone, so another dish purchased specifically for the holiday also will be on the table.